Newbie trying to stretch the miles
 

Ok, so I'm new to riding on the road. Ridden dirt forever. (which don't mean crap...yeah I know) Got a 2014 Road King end of May 2014. Ive got 3000 miles on it already.

I just did a 300 mile ride today and am wondering what is the magic number one should be able to ride in a day to actually tour the country, given work, standard vacation limitations, etc.

Is it 500? When you all head out to Sturgis, what's the ride break down into?

Mike

I am in Colorado and just went to Sturgis. Its only about 430 miles for me. With 8 bikes heading up, we made it up there in about 7 and a half hours. On the way home, I rode by myself, I made it back in 6 hours. I would say 5-600 miles a day is a pretty good target.

I'm in the middle of California, so it looks like almost a 1500 mile ride. Couple of different ways to get there. Way North Route through Yellowstone, North Route through Reno/Salt Lake and the southern route through Vegas, Grand Junction.

Which do you all like?

If I'm on a mission to get somewhere... 750 - 800 is not unreasonable.

I can get 1500 in 2 days.

If the "journey" is part of the vacation... then usually around 500 a day.

I see an question that would be tough to answer. Lots depends on it. There is an Iron Butt challenge do ride the 48 in 10 days, that would over 1000 miles a day.

How are you defining a day? 24 hours, 12 hours, sun up to sunset. How long have you been riding? The more you ride the longer you can set. Your body actually adopts to riding, that is why the MC's that ride almost all the time can do a 800-1000 days and still have the energy to go. You actually develop muscles to ride longer, blood flow etc.

Then there is the factors of how long can you set in the seat, what type of riding, back roads or interstates. How comfortable is your set up? How much sleep do you need to be alert.

Basically it comes down to ride your pace, and figure how many miles based on how many hours you can ride at one time safely. Then pick your route, and objective. Is the objective to get from point a to b and never mind anything in between?

You could ride the entire United states at 100 miles a day and see lots in between, or touch 48 states in 10 days and meet a goal.

Me, I ride 25k - 30k a year on my bike. However the bike I have now is not quit tuned in for more than about 8 hours a day. When I picked up my bike and rode it back I did 1100 miles in 2 1/2 days due to route and stops and I wanted to be done by 4:00 in the afternoon.

As I get order though I can't sit in the saddle as many hours and enjoy my ride.

Do some trips, you did 300 miles, how did that feel, how many hours did it take you, how comfortable are you on the interstate, backroads, night time, do you hydrate yourself during the summer, what is your tolerance for heat, cold, rain? If you had fun then push a little more, then work on it like a runner training for a marathon if you have a goal in mind.

If you couldn't ride much more without pain, discomfort, and completely worn out the next day than stay at that those hours until you build up some stamina.

Figure hours of riding rather than miles. Trying to hit a mileage mark without training can kill you. Road closures, construction, weather can all cut down on your miles, trying for that XX miles per day when you are spent can cause you to make a bad decision and crash.

Enjoy that scoot, you got a really nice one and you will get to where you want to be as you work towards it.

Thank you,those all help.

Over time, you'll find out that no two days are the same because of so many variables.

Retired military here so "500-a-day" is stuck in my brain. We always had to fill out paperwork indicating rest breaks (when & where) so the 500-mile rule still applies for me. Anything more gets the body stiff/sore.

I rode to Sturgis and did 510 one day and 500 the next ! I was a little apprehensive about the amount of miles we had to ride but I was riding with a friend and we took breaks every 150 miles and did just fine ! 500 miles if you are on a schedule, if not 300- 400 is good ! Enjoy the trip if you have the time and its about the journey ! Oh and I've been riding a year and a half and I'm 59 so enjoy and ride safe !!

My feeling is that it's how many miles YOU are comfortable with. It's different for everybody. It also depends on the type of riding you are doing too. Blasting down the highway at 80 mph is different than riding the twisty's all day.